


Summer Home

by spaze_cat



Series: Fanbook Submissions [2]
Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Beach Setting, Budding Romance, Completed, F/M, M/M, Mention of pregnancy, One Shot, established relationships - Freeform, fanbook submission
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-18
Updated: 2017-09-18
Packaged: 2018-12-31 05:18:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12125373
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spaze_cat/pseuds/spaze_cat
Summary: The boys have seen beaches, but they’ve never gone there as a celebration. It’s always been a destination, a place their enemies were hiding out or doing shady business at, and that’s the reason they went.Now that all of that is behind them, April decides to give them something she is sure they’d never had before.Normalcy.((Fanbook submission for the "Sea Shells Summer Fanbook" that was put together by Kampiestarz!))





	Summer Home

**~~~**  
**Summer Home**  
**~~~**

 

A few years after everything calms down, April makes plans.

The boys have seen beaches, but they’ve never gone there as a celebration. It’s always been a destination, a place their enemies were hiding out or doing shady business at, and that’s the reason they went.

They’ve never had a beach party, never spent a day playing in the sun, other than those spent at the farmhouse. Even then, any fun they could have had was tainted with the constant reminder that they’d been defeated, and that their father was gone.

Now that all of that is behind them, April decides to give them something she is sure they’d never had before.

Normalcy.

Soon enough, she comes into some money. She gets promoted at work, and that extra zero makes all the difference. Sometime in January, she finds the perfect place. It’s isolated, located on a private beach, surrounded on almost all sides by rocky hills. She calls the owner, who is thinking of selling the house, but for now is simply renting it out for a few summer months. She tells him she and Casey are newlyweds, that they want somewhere secluded and peaceful for their honeymoon.

She neglects to tell him about the four mutant turtles she plans on bringing with her.

It takes a lot to convince Leo to let them all go. He doesn’t think they need a vacation, is insistent that it is their duty to protect the city. But then April shows him the invoice she’d received for the rental fees on the beach house, knowing he can’t turn down such an expensive gift.

He begrudgingly agrees to take her up on the offer.

 

* * *

 

Mikey decides he likes the sun the best. Even though it burns his skin the first day. But to be fair, Donnie did warn them all, and it isn’t really the sun’s fault that Mikey ignored that warning.

Always thinking three steps ahead, Donnie brought along some sunscreen he’d concocted for their distinctly non-human skin. Mikey is sure it was made with him in mind, since Raph and Leo usually listen to Donnie’s warnings these days.

The first night is pretty fun, though, because Donnie has to spend most of the evening treating Mikey’s burns. And that treatment involves him massaging his custom salve deep into Mikey’s flesh, in every area the sun kissed his skin a little too much.

And Mikey takes full advantage of it.

Pretty soon he’s got Donnie pinned to the bed instead, and though his skin burns, the love between them burns brighter.

Another thing he loves are the waves. They push and pull his body with such force, and it’s like the very breath of nature itself. Even when he swims in the deeper water, he can feel that push and pull, and the back and forth motion centers him. Like a balance of its own, even though it always teeters.

One day, he convinces (bribes) Donnie to bury him in the sand. They dig a giant hole far from the water and Mikey plops down into it. Leo, Raph, and Casey come over to help fill the space back in with sand. Well, Raph and Casey help. Leo just watches, shaking his head disapprovingly.

But Mikey sees the way his lips twitch at the corners, and knows Leo is fighting to hide his amusement.

When Mikey is reduced to a turtle head poking out of a sea of sand, April comes over to snap some pictures. They all pose with him, make funny faces, and Mikey is reminded of when they were kids.

But this is so much better, because this time they aren’t just playing in the sewers. This time, they have clean, fresh air, the push and pull of the waves, and their smiles are so much better for it.

 

* * *

 

Donnie covers himself in a fine layer of sunscreen, secretly terrified of sunburns. He’s never had one, but he’s experienced burns in the past, and in his humble opinion, any kind of burn can kindly go fuck themselves.

His brothers poke fun at him for the bits he forgets to wipe away, but after they’re done snickering, Mikey gently wipes it off, leaves him instead with a kiss, and Donnie feels like he’s falling in love all over again.

He doesn’t like wet sand, hates how it clings to his skin, so he stays in the dry areas, his ever-curious mind itching to take samples of the sand and sea water. But for the sake of vacation, he neglects to scratch.

He mostly watches Mikey run around, playing in the sand and sea, flourishing in the sunshine. Because the goofball’s pure, unfiltered happiness has always been enough to sustain Donatello. Out here that happiness thrives, and every cheerful laugh and smile is like a flower blooming in his heart.

Sometimes he’ll join his brothers for a game of beach volleyball, always siding with Mikey even if they’re supposedly the “B-Team.” Even if that were true, it’s become far less so in the last few years. Donnie and Mikey have grown, and together they can prove quite a challenge to beat.

That being said, Raph and Leo usually win most games, but Donnie thinks it’s because Mikey lets them. Raph and Leo have so much difference between them, so much they could argue about, that every chance they get to work together is important.

Donnie wonders if they’ve admitted their feelings to each other yet. He thinks, sadly, that they probably have not.

But Raph is close, he thinks. Raph is like Mikey sometimes. He’s just got so much inside of him, but unlike Mikey, Raph likes to keep it inside. And then it bottles up, and one day, explodes.

Hopefully, this time, it explodes in a good way.

 

* * *

 

Raph doesn’t like the sun nearly as much as Mikey.

He gets stupid burns even with mountains of Donnie’s stupid sunscreen, and unlike stupid Mikey, Raph doesn’t have a stupid lover to rub him down with stupid burn cream!

And he’s pretty sure he hates sand. Hate’s a strong word, he knows, but he also knows that sand finds its way into every nook and cranny of his body and makes him itch like crazy, and then when he itches, sometimes his burns will hurt, and then when he stops, it itches _again_ —

He does like playing volleyball, though. As usual, he and Leo make a great team, and sometimes when they play, Leo gets this look in his eyes like he _sees_ that, and maybe _likes_ it, and Raph's nerves get all fried and he feels so incredibly weak.

He doesn’t trust this place, even if April insists no one could stumble upon them here. But it’s not like it’s an island, and it only takes one stray hiker to climb up the side of one of these hills by chance. So when his brothers are too tired of volleyball, Raph spends much of his time watching those hills, scanning for any dark figures lurking in the bushes.

Karai took control of the Foot years ago, but old habits die hard. Besides, it’s not like they’ll ever run out of enemies completely, despite what April seems to think. They were raised to be warriors, and anyone who fights has to have someone to fight _with_.

But he relaxes considerably at night. Mostly because he and Leo have taken to climbing to the rooftops after sunset. All they really do is talk and look at the stars, listen to the comforting crashing of the waves, but Raph wouldn’t trade those moments for anything.

One night, Leo slips his hand into Raph’s. Their fingers fit together so perfectly, and the gesture touches something deeper inside of Raph, something he wasn’t really sure could be touched. He’s surprised, but also so very relieved, and they both lay there quietly, no sound to break their silence save the gentle crashing of the waves. Raph squeezes Leo’s hand.

He decides this place isn’t so bad after all.

 

* * *

 

Leo finds a freedom here that he hadn’t known he needed.

During the day, he watches as his brothers flourish. Well, at least Donnie and Mikey. Raph prefers hiding under the umbrellas, or under the deck of the house. He reminds Leo of a wet cat, pouting and scowling at everything because it’s uncomfortable.

The thought is somehow endearing, and Leo finds a part of himself awakening.

It’s a part he’s kept hidden for so long, and he didn’t even know it was there until now. It’s like the thought wasn’t safe, somehow, the desire too dangerous to even consider on a conscious level, that his mind simply tucked it away in a dusty corner even his meditation couldn’t reach.

But now that it’s free, Leo can’t stop thinking about it.

He sees that radiant joy between Donnie and Mikey and remembers when they told him of their relationship. They had both appeared so serious, so determined, that Leo didn’t even think to lecture them on the possible repercussions. He could see in it in their eyes, how they’d already struggled through those thoughts on their own.

He’d given them their blessing, and then somehow, he’d begun to feel empty.

Now he finally understands why.

One night, he takes the initiative. He hopes, prays that Raph feels even half of what he feels in return, and only breathes again when he feels Raph’s hand squeeze his own.

Like a reassurance, an acceptance, an equivalent exchange.

He sees why they needed this now, and vows to thank April for everything she’d foreseen. Maybe she didn’t know exactly what would happen, that she would create the beginning of something so beautiful. But if they hadn’t come here, Leo is sure he would not have been able open this door.

He curls his body against Raph’s, and relishes in the desire that floods through him. He looks into his brother’s eyes, and they reflect the hunger in his own.

They make love for the first time on that rooftop. It’s full of fumbles and awkward maneuvering, but Leo couldn’t imagine a better feeling than lying in Raph’s arms after that crescendo of pleasure and ultimate connection.

They share a bed that night, their hunger temporarily subsided, and Leo decides he doesn’t want to rise early the next morning because he doesn’t want to leave Raph’s firm embrace. The way he holds Leo is so protective, possessive, and even though _he’s_ their Sensei now, Leo feels safe, watched over, as though he needed that protection with his level of skill.

And he realizes, finally, that even though he can fight so well, he will always need his brothers, his family, to be there for him. Even if he can stand his ground, he cannot succeed without them. Especially not without Raphael.

A few days later, still settling into their new relationship, Leo finds a quiet moment by himself. Their next step in love had changed everything, and yet the differences between them still spark tension. Despite the frustration of their argument, Leo finds he’s more than okay with this. He wouldn’t want Raph to become more complacent, more obedient. It’s his questioning of Leo’s choices that keeps his strategic mind flexible.

He even finds beauty in their disagreements.

He meditates by the waves, his toes digging into the sand and his eyes closed. He takes in the white noise of the sea around him. It’s always moving, water molecules always flowing over one another, crashing, pushing, shoving, but still always moving.

Leo thinks that he and Raph are not unlike the sea.

 

* * *

 

April leans slightly against the railing of the house’s deck, watching the turtles experience a slice of life free of their usual worries. She feels a sense of great accomplishment in giving this peace to her friends, even if it was for such a short while.

Today is the last day at the beach house, and April finds she doesn’t really want to leave. In a few short weeks, this place has begun to feel like a second home for them.

Similar to the farmhouse, but without the painful memories, without the cold grave of her Sensei resting in the field.

This place smells like salt, an abundance of sunshine, and fun. Her childhood memories of beach trips with her father, some even with her mother, come to mind. She wonders if the turtles are making similar fond memories, or if she’s only imagining the new brightness to their eyes, the way they are now so much more animated and _alive_.

She rests her hand on her abdomen, sensing the life beneath her skin. Thanks to her psychic powers, she doesn’t need to pee on a stick to know. She told Casey last night, and he spent the whole night curled up close to her tummy, rubbing softly and mumbling promises to his unborn child.

Her husband comes up behind her now, wraps his arms around her and kisses her shoulder. His hands land on her own, and their fingers intertwine. Casey can still be unpredictable sometimes, but he’s a lot more tender these days. His energy rings in her mind, his own way of saying hello to her without having to say a word.

“When should we tell them?” He asks, resting his chin on her shoulder and looking out onto the beach.

He follows her gaze to the rest of their family. Raph is chasing Mikey for splashing him with cold ocean water. Donnie is making another one of his crazy physics-bending sand castles, and Leo stares hard at Raph, his face trying so hard to mask his love.

It doesn’t take a psychic to know how close Raph and Leo have become, what this trip has given them.

“That they’re going to be uncles?” April asks, a smile in her voice.

“No,” says Casey. “I meant about the house.”

April’s smile falls, and she turns to face Casey.

“The house?”

He smiles at her, and that goofy gap in his teeth looks as mischievous as it always had.

“I bought it, April,” he tells her. “It’s ours. A summer house, or a permanent one. I thought it’d be better in our hands than just wasting away, passing from person to person. You and I can make this thing a home.”

Her heart swells, and she kisses him as sweetly as she did on their wedding day.

“I love you, Casey Jones,” she says. He raises an eyebrow.

“I know,” he teases. When she smacks his arm, he guffaws in his usual dorky laugh. “Hey, but seriously. When are we gonna tell them they’re gonna be uncles?”

April turns back to the turtles. Her friends, her brothers. They’re so in their elements here, safe as they can get from their enemies, the stress in their bodies drained for the first time in years.

“Later,” April says softly. “For now, let them play.”


End file.
